Join Disciples historians and scholars at the 2022 Kirkpatrick Conference, “Visions of Wholeness: Systemic Racism, Antiracism, and ‘Reconciliation’ in Our Shared History and Tradition” will be March 18-19, at Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa.
The conference is sponsored through Disciples of Christ Historical Society’s Kirkpatrick Lecture Endowment.
Bringing together leading Disciples and Stone Campbell scholars and church leaders, this academic conference, open to the public, will critically analyze the impact of systemic racism and tell important stories of resistance to it. We will conclude with a conversation about where we go from here as we live more fully into the anti-racism priority we have claimed as a church.
Rev. Sandhya Jha will open the conference on Friday morning. Sandhya Jha is an anti-oppression consultant who particularly loves helping organizations get Diversity/Equity/Inclusion teams off the ground.
Rev. Dr. William Barber II will present the keynote address on Friday evening of the conference. He is the President and Senior Lecturer of Repairers of the Breach, Co-Chair of the Poor People’s Campaign; Bishop with The Fellowship of Affirming Ministries; Visiting Professor at Union Theological Seminary; Pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church in Goldsboro, N.C., and the author of four books.
Rev. Dr. Frank Thomas will be the preacher for the closing worship on Saturday. He currently serves as the Nettie Sweeney and Hugh Miller Professor of Homiletics and Director of the Academy of Preaching and Celebration at Christian Theological Seminary. With a long history of excellence in preaching and preaching method, Thomas was inducted into the prestigious Martin Luther King Jr. Board of Preachers of Morehouse College.
Disciples General Minister and President Rev. Terri Hord Owens will give the charge as the conference closes. A Disciple since young adulthood, Hord Owens was dean of students at the University of Chicago Divinity School and pastor of First Christian Church of Downers Grove, IL prior to her election.
On Saturday morning, participants will gather at Reconciliation Park in the Greenwood Community for a remembrance of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre.
Major grant funding provided by Reconciliation Ministry and the Oreon E. Scott Foundation, in addition to partnerships and sponsorships from various Disciples ministries, makes it possible to offer travel grants.
The registration fee is $70, which includes three meals. Register for in-person or livestream attendance at www.discipleshistory.org/about/register.